MONDAY PUZZLE — Now this is a puzzle I can use!
While my dreams of traveling or just relaxing on a beach have been temporarily dashed by the coronavirus, I can still enjoy some lovely beach weather in Alan Massengill and Andrea Carla Michaels’s puzzle.
If only they made scratch-and-sniff puzzles, I could inhale the scent of the ocean and the coconut sunscreen.
Tricky Clues
Ms. Michaels is known for her smooth grids, and her collaboration with Mr. Massengill is no different. There are a few words in here that seem a bit tough for a Monday (OSSA and ID EST are two of them), but all in all, it’s a sunny, enjoyable solve.
42A/43A. To the subversive in me, there is nothing better than to see a mostly 1970s entry like URI Geller right next to the “Modern terms of endearment,” BAE. It’s like everyone’s worlds colliding, and I am here for it. Here’s hoping that all of the generations will shake hands and promise not to pick on one another about what they need to know to solve a crossword puzzle.
1D. It’s also fascinating to me that an entry like WALL ST. could have been left out of the Times Crossword since 1972. How did it miss the “Greed Decade,” the 1980s? At any rate, it’s back.
54D. OK, let’s toss a coin: Heads, it’s a PBJ; tails, it’s a BLT. Tails today. Good thing, too, or the revealer would have been PEACHFRONT, and that’s just silly.
Today’s Theme
We are at the BEACH, and the constructors would like us to take note of the atmosphere around us. The first word in each of the four theme entries is something you might see at the beach.
Listen to the WAVES crash, body SURF to your heart’s content, go hunting for interesting SHELLS (my favorite beach-related activity!) and watch the PALMS swaying in the wind. Now that’s a relaxing day.
This puzzle feels fresh to me, and that was confirmed by my research (or possibly by my desperate desire to get out of my house): All four of the theme entries and the revealer, BEACHFRONT (property) at 54A, are debuts.
In nontheme news, I also liked that HORA and LATKE are neighbors (I feel seen), and enjoyed DIET SODAS (because of this hilarious piece from the much-missed website The Toast), as well as (Stupid) PET TRICKS.
Constructor Notes
Alan Massengill: I am a radiologist in Hickory, N.C., living with my lovely wife, Judy, an anesthesiologist. We just dropped off our daughter, Grace, for her second semester of nursing school.
I got my love of puzzles from my mother, who still test solves for me and helps with cluing. Other than puzzles, I enjoy walking and playing pickleball.
About the puzzle: This idea came out of another collaboration with Andrea. I kept trying to work WAVES into a hair-themed puzzle, and Andrea kept giving it the thumbs down, but it put us in the mood for a beach puzzle.
Andrea is an amazing collaborator — funny and talented. We played around with every combination we could think of, and it was fun to focus on the beach terms as verbs. A BEACH FRONT reveal brought the whole thing together.
The Times editorial staff was great to work with and their final touches improved the puzzle. They did put the kibosh on a not-so-good SAND entry, but they did allow us a chance to redo the whole grid with the new entries. We tried to make the big corners accessible for an early week level.
We hope you all enjoy the solve. Stay safe everyone!
Andrea Carla Michaels: This may be Alan’s debut (and my 70th!), but it is the fourth one we’ve collaborated on in less than a year.
We’ve not yet met in person, only courtesy of the Crossword Puzzle Collaboration Directory group on Facebook, but we immediately clicked.
As a partner, he’s a dream: easygoing, completely open to criticism and suggestions, bursting with ideas and quite unflappable (a quality you want in a radiologist and a writing cohort!).
As Alan mentioned above, a possible WAVE themer for a hair puzzle organically became the seed (grain of sand?) entry for a day at the beach.
Rereading our email exchanges, I see this was a true meeting of minds, as we built a sandcastle together!
We’re going to enjoy this moment in the sun till the tide comes in! Looking forward to many more from the good doctor.
The Tipping Point
Almost finished solving but need a bit more help? We’ve got you covered.
Warning: There be spoilers ahead, but subscribers can take a peek at the answer key.
Trying to get back to the puzzle page? Right here.
Your thoughts?
"along" - Google News
August 17, 2020 at 05:00AM
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Along the Ocean - The New York Times
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